Dell Products Inc.

Dell USA L P

Dell Procucts L.p.

James L Walker

Alok Pant

John J Hawk

John Hentosh

Charles P Zeller

Loren Fredlund

Shekar Babu Suryanarayana

John J Pearce

Karunakar Poosapalli

Kendall C Witte

James E Dailey

Anthony L Overfield

Hung V Ho

Chia-Hao Chang

Te-Lung Lin

Tsung-Lin Chuang

An information handling system includes a memory and a processor. The memory stores a current basic input/output system (BIOS) firmware image. During a regular boot mode of the information handling, the processor creates a first set of tables associated with the current BIOS firmware image, stores the first tables to the memory, and receives a BIOS firmware update image. During a BIOS update boot mode of the information handling system, the processor creates a second plurality of tables associated with the BIOS firmware update image, and compares the first and second tables. In response to a difference being determined between the first and second tables, the processor aborts the BIOS update boot mode and generate an error log.

Information handling system with a dynamic basic input/output system configuration map

A system for source language module interaction using an event mechanism includes one or more subsystems to detect a producer event, detect a consumer event, generate a new source language method for the producer event and a new source language method for the consumer event, and link the producer event and the consumer event using the new source language method. In an embodiment, the source language may be ASL.

Modular ASL component

A system and method for BIOS and controller communication is provided herein. The system may include an information handling system that includes a central processing unit coupled to a memory. The memory may contain a basic input/output system (BIOS). The information handling systems may also include a controller coupled to a nonvolatile memory and a register coupled to the central processing unit and the controller. The controller may be operable to store a key in the nonvolatile memory; write the key to the register in response to a signal from the BIOS; receive a command from the BIOS; verify the command is from the BIOS using the key; and execute the command if the command is from the BIOS.

System and method for BIOS and controller communication

A system and method for BIOS and controller communication. An information handling system comprises a central processing unit coupled to a memory. The memory further comprises a BIOS. The information handling system further comprises a controller coupled to a nonvolatile memory, and a register coupled to the central processing unit and the controller. The controller is operable to initialize communication with the BIOS, and service commands from the BIOS. The central processing unit is operable to initialize communication with the controller, and send commands to the controller. A method for communication between a BIOS and a controller in an information handling system comprises initializing communication between the BIOS and the controller. The method further comprises encrypting a command using a key by the BIOS, and sending the command to the controller. The controller processes the command, and the BIOS receives the result.

In a Uniform Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) environment, a system management mode (SMM) driver and a non-SMM driver may be installed for the same hardware device. Until the SMM driver is available, the non-SMM driver is configured to conduct input/output (IO) transactions directly with the hardware device. The non-SMM driver can utilize native UEFI services to receive a notification that the SMM driver is available. Upon receiving such notification, (or if the SMM driver was already available before the non-SMM driver), the non-SMM driver is reconfigured to redirect all IO requests to the SMM driver, which then conducts the corresponding IO transactions directly with the hardware device. Redirecting all non-SMM IO requests for a hardware device to the SMM driver for the hardware device limits direct access to the hardware device to only one driver, the SMM driver, thereby facilitating the integrity or atomicity of IO transactions.

Input/output transaction management during platform initiation

A system and method is disclosed for providing a firmware update to a device of a computer system in which a firmware update application and a firmware image are provided to a computer system. Verification steps are performed to insure that both the firmware update application and the user are authorized to perform the firmware update process. If the verification steps indicate that both the firmware update application and the user are authorized, the computer system is reset. During the boot process, the presence of the firmware update is recognized and the firmware update application is initiated, resulting in an update of the firmware of the device.

System and method for providing a secure firmware update to a device in a computer system

Method and apparatus for selectively overriding a prepackaged power management driver of a portable personal computer so that data transmitted to the CPIU of the computer by a device, such as a &ldquo;real time&rdquo; serial communicators device connected thereto, is not lost during the CPUs latency &ldquo;wake up&rdquo; period following a CPU power-down operation. An override system stored in memory comprises an override flag which may be set or cleared by a user or the computer. If the override flag is set, then the power management system is prevented from reducing power to the CPU so that the occurrence of a CPU latency period and thus potential for loss of data is avoided.

Power management override for portable computers

A portable computer is provided with enhanced power management capabilities. The portable computer includes a power management system which makes a determination as to whether the computer is 'user attended' or 'user unattended' based upon the position of the display screen in one embodiment. If the display screen is open, then the computer is regarded as being 'user attended'. In this case, a first timeout delay of I/O inactivity is applied before the computer is permitted to enter a power saving suspend mode. However, if the display screen is closed, then the computer is regarded as being 'user unattended'. Is this situation, a second timeout delay of I/O inactivity is applied before the computer is allowed to enter the power saving suspend mode. The second timeout delay is generally significantly shorter than the first timeout delay. This technique is found to significantly increase the reliability of I/O activities such as external communications with the computer when the computer is 'user unattended'.

Computer system with unattended operation power-saving suspend mode

A system and method for enabling a computer system to cascade from the suspend state to the zero volt suspend-to-disk state. The system and method uses the computer system's real time clock (RTC) to provide an alarm indicating when the computer system should enter the suspend-to-disk state. The RTC is used because this device is active even when the computer system is in an ultra low power state, such as the suspend state. The present invention also includes a method which prevents the power management or system management software from interfering with other application's use of the RTC alarm.

Growing community of inventors

Cedar Park, TX, United States of America

James L Walker